EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR: - Customer Service Institute of Australia

world that focus on the experience of
the guest. “There’s a great expression
I learnt from Disney; Everything
Speaks. Everything, from how you
got to a venue to your interactions
with staff members, combines with
other elements to really speak to you
as a customer.” Everything Speaks,
according to Shannon, is at the heart
of the service offering the Disney
Brand adheres to. “This is the place
that people label the happiest place on
earth. You know it sets the bar high,”
he said.
Shannon recalls an anecdote from
1955, when Walt Disney decided to
“People were thinking ‘What is this
place where people live in the movies
and the future Is this guy nuts!” he
said. When the theme park was near
completion it was time for Disney to
outsource those he believed should
work at such a complex. “The only
similar place on Earth were carnivals.
(Walt) didn’t want Disney people to
be associated with the reputation
of carnival people. The stereotype
of a carnival worker is sleazy, scary,
criminal, tattooed, dirty. That just
said. It was up to Disney to create a
work force that was atypical, avoided
the carnival stereotype, and would
assure the Disney Brand promise was
delivered by its people. “What Disney
teaches is that you need to have the
right people in the right place,” he
said. “Many organisations call up
the Disney Institute and ask how to
get their staff to be more like Disney
people.That doesn’t happen because
there’s pixie dust, or a magic elixir in
the water, it happens because there is
a service or culture by design.”
During his time at Imagineering
Shannon was sought after to work
with 40 different American health
and sports assignments. He was also
Chairman of the American Council
for Exercise. “With over 12 years
experience in health care I certainly
know how to create a culture by
design,” he said. These experiences
set him up for the new journey ahead.
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2005, upon leaving Disney and
spending three years as the Executive
Director of Duke University’s health
system and School of Medicine,
Shannon joined Da Vita, the
world’s largest kidney care business
as their Vice President and Chief
company resulted in the creation of
positive experiences for over 110 000
nationwide dialysis patients. “I try
to teach an organisation to keep the
patient at the centre of their thoughts.
I don’t want people to think about
themselves, the processes they have
to stick to, or how they might look.
One should never lose sight of the
patient, the family, the circle of beings
that surround that patient,” he said.
Fondly known as “coach,” due to his
background as a high school teacher
and basketball coach, Shannon taught
business leaders the importance of
empowering the front line. “I will
always be a coach at heart. I motivate
the end person, or the care giver, to
realise that what they are being taught
the experiences of hundreds and
thousands of patients,” he said.
By the end of his journey with
Da Vita, they were ranked number
one in innovation among medical
facilities. He equates this to creating a
community culture amongst it’s people.
“Da Vita, in terms of hierarchy, places
company second. Each member of
that community will give the company
110 per cent because they feel part of
a family,” he said.
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In 2011, 40 per cent of all of industries
and organisations that call the Disney
Institute for training will be from the
health care industry. Shannon predicts,
by following trends apparent in the US
and Canada, there will be an increase
of Australian health care institutions
seeking training in patient centred care
and customer service.
Now, as he is called back to consult
and teach for the Disney Brand, while
still remaining a visiting Scholar at
Dukes School of Business, Shannon
hopes to combine the two worlds and
give back to those that taught him to
concentrate on his most prized skill,
facilitating by use of story telling.
“During the masterclass many will
experience the link I create between
storytelling and real life solutions. I tell
a great story, or several stories, inject
humour and interact with the audience
to give them the tools required to build
a solid patient, or customer, centric
business,” he said. “When you make
things personal or, what Disney is good
at, touch people in the heart you can
create an organisation where your
beliefs are the beliefs of your people.”
Shannon will begin his tour in Sydney
on the 19th of July at Circular Quay.
CSIA members who book will
receive a 10 per cent discount, to all
seminars nationwide, by quoting their
membership number. To check for
dates, or to down load a booking form,
please visit:
http://www.changechampions.com.
au/program/Bill_Shannon_Flyer_
D14.pdf
!!April 2011
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